Daisy Miller

I finished Daisy Miller. I have made Rory status on the Gilmore Girls reading challenge. I wasn't sure I was going to make it.

I didn't really like Daisy Miller. She was a very flat character. I didn't understand her at all. The whole story seemed kind of anti-climatic to me. It's like the tiny bags of chips. It leaves you unsatisfied and wishing for more....

Now I'm going to sign up for a new challenge. I don't really know why I'm doing it. I think because it has to do with classics and left to my own, I will just read a bunch of paranormal romances. At least this will make me read something more substantial. :)

Gilmore Girls reading Challenge

I'm so far behind on posting about this! It's sad, really. I'm almost done. The challenge says that movies count, but I really wanted to read all the books. I have one book left to read. Here's my final list:

Classics
Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen
Frankenstein, Mary Shelly
The Raven, Edgar Allen Poe

Children's/Young Adults
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Kate Douglas Wiggin

Modern Classics
Slaughterhouse 5, Kurt Vonnegut
A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams
Franny and Zooey, J. D. Salinger
Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett
1984, George Orwell

Non-fiction
I'm with the Band, Pamela Des Barres
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Hunter S. Thompson
Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom
Helter Skelter, Bugliosi & Gentry
The Dirt, Lee/Neil/Mars/Sixx

Other
The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides
Love Story, Erich Segal
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann
Rosemary's Baby, Ira Levin
Peyton's Place, Grace Metalious

That leaves me with one more to read. I have until Dec. 31 to finish reading Daisy Miller by Henry James. It's listed under the Modern Classics section. To get the Rory status you have to "Read 20 books from at least 4 different categories." I'll get that if I finish this one last book...

Slaughterhouse Five

I finished another book in my Gilmore Girl's Challenge. I finished Slaughterhouse 5 by Vonnegut. It was an interesting book. It reminded me of a maze. You had to pay a lot of attention to where you are or you'll get lost. I'm glad I've read it. It wasn't the life-changing book that everyone seems to hype it as, but it wasn't bad either. I had a hard time with Mrs. Pilgrim. The narrator describes her as big and undesirable. For many scenes, Billy seems distant from her. Later, Billy looks back on her in a loving manner. Does he love her or not? I don't know why, but I feel as if I'm missing something...

I hate doing book reviews. I want to tell about the book without ruining it for anyone.

Helter Skelter

This was an interesting book. You are really required to put away your logical thinking when dealing with it. Most people look for the why. There is no why with these horrible crimes. There is just a very sick man who found a way to get people to believe in him and do whatever he asked without question. That kind of mentality has always been interesting to me. It was neat to see how the prosecutor put the case together. It's also very sad to read about the ineptness of the police. They had pieces that they could never put together.

This is my fifth book in the Gilmore Girl's reading list. With this book, I have reached Emily status! :)

The Virgin Suicides

I had a really hard time getting through this book. There was little I had in common with the characters. I didn't have over-protective parents. I think running away would be easier. I kept waiting for the "ah-ha!" moment where I understood the girls. It never came.

This makes the 4th book in my Gilmore Girl's list!

The good news- I'm below my goal weight. I feel like a huge weight (ha-ha!) has been lifted off my shoulders. I feel like I can now make the right choices when I eat and not need to obsess over it or the number on the scale!

Love Story

I read Love Story by Erich Segal in about an hour. It's a nice quick read. I spend most of the time feeling like I've read it before. I know I hadn't but, I'm sure Nicholas Sparks redid this story! :) It was a good story. I was glad the girl in the story was such a strong woman. She handled everything she was given with dignity. It seemed way too quick to get a book off my list! :) That's three down. Rory status, here I come! :)

The Dirt!

Another book off of my Gilmore Girls reading list. That's two now! :)

http://www.amazon.com/Motley-Crue-Confessions-Worlds-Notorious/dp/0060989157/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1270143916&sr=1-1

This book started out with a bang! It only got better from there. As you can imagine, it has sex, drugs and rock and roll. Not necessarily in that order (frequently that was the order!)

I have always loved Motley Crue. They were one of my favorites! It's really nice to get to know so much more about the band members. If you are a fan, you have to read this book! I have a waiting list to borrow my copy.

Valley of the Dolls

I read my first book for the Gilmore Girls reading challenge. I started with Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann. I bought it at Borders because I saw it and knew it was on my list. I should have borrowed it from the library. It did not make my "I will read this again list." I have very little patience for weak female characters. I had high hopes for Anne. She seemed so strong at the beginning. Going out on her own from everything she had known to start a life she wanted. What happened to you, girl? I don't think love should have turned you into an idiot!

One down on my list... several more to go. I started Lady Chatterly's Lover and found Inferno and Uncle Tom's cabin on Daily Lit. I feel like I'm already behind in this challenge. I'm not much of a reader anymore. I used to read when I went outside to smoke... :)

Long time no post...

Hey there! I haven't posted in ages. Lots of changes. I ran my first 5K. My time was slow, but I'm sure it will get better. :) It was fun. I was lucky that Sarah took her time to drive down from Alexandria to run it with me. I don't know if I would have made it without her! Thanks, Sarah!

My weight is down to 182. (A little up from that sometimes.) Which means I've lost 130 pounds. It's not as low as the surgeon wants me to be. He wants me at 170. My year appointment is Jan 4th (less than 3 weeks). I don't think my weight will go down anymore. I think the surgeon is going to be unhappy with me. :( I hate getting yelled at!

Sarah has found a really cool reading challenge for next year. It's called Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge. I love the Gilmore Girls. I have every season on DVD. I've watched them all several times. I'm going for the Rory status. I don't read as much as I used to. I used to read while I was smoking. Now I don't smoke, so I don't read as much. Sarah listed the books she's going to try to read to get to Rory status. I'll do the same!

Classics:

Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen
Inferno, Dante
Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert
Lady Chatterly's Lover, DH Lawrence
Uncle Tom's Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

Modern Classics:

A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess
Catch 22, Joseph Heller
The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer
Slaughterhouse 5, Kurt Vonnegut
A Streetcar named Desire, Tennessee Williams

Non-fiction:
Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom
Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders, Bugliosi and Gentry
The Year of Magical Thinking, Joan Didion
The Dirt: Confessions of the Most Notorious Rockband, Motley Crue
Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk, McNeil and McCain

Others:
The House of Sand and Fog, Andre Dubuss III
The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides
Girl, Interrupted, Susanna Kaysen
Love Story, Erich Segal
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann

Bold= read